The greatest Urdu stories ever told is one of the finest and rare short story collections. Every story in the anthology illustrates one or the other facet of life like death, fear, desire and poverty. This book contains 25 Urdu Short Stories.

This is indeed a good collection of short stories, and I am indeed glad that this has been published. Urdu has declined, as a language, in many parts of North & Northwest India. My father spoke it, as did my grandfather. Not me

I have been rediscovering the works of Urdu poets and writers, and it is indeed good that this book has been published because it serves to remind the public (also in India) that there are great stories to be found in my country, in languages other than English.

The collection of stories itself is good. Whether this is a collection of the greatest, or among the greatest, is a matter of debate.

Some of the stories shine through, even with the limitations of the English language. Stories like Lajwanti, Toba Tek Singh, etc are magnificent even in English. Others suffer, even though the translators have done a magnificent job.

It is definitely a book worth reading. It has inspired me to hunt for the stories, in Hindi sadly, to add to my own collection. To that extent, Muhammad Umar Memon has performed a great service. ( )